Variegated Ginger Mint – Gold-Splashed Spicy Mint

£5.95

Variegated Ginger Mint (Mentha × gracilis 'Variegata') has bright green leaves streaked with gold and a flavour that is warm, fruity and gently spicy, with a hint of ginger. Supplied as a healthy plant in a 9cm pot, it is easy to grow in a pot on the patio, by the kitchen door or on a windowsill.

Product Highlights

Gold-streaked leaves that brighten pots and borders
Warm, fruity scent with a gentle ginger note
Perfect for pots, where it stays neat and contained
Hardy perennial that returns every year
Flowers loved by bees and butterflies

What You Receive

1 healthy, established Variegated Ginger Mint plant in a 9cm pot
Grown and packed with care in the UK

How to Use It

Lovely in fruit salads, melon, summer drinks, iced tea and Asian-style dishes, and as a colourful garnish.

Folklore & Fascinating Facts

Ginger mint is a natural hybrid of corn mint and spearmint, and its gold-variegated form has been grown as an ornamental herb for centuries.
In Greek myth, the nymph Minthe was turned into a mint plant by the jealous Persephone; Hades gave her a sweet scent so she would never be forgotten.

Botanical name: Mentha × gracilis 'Variegata'

Common name: Variegated Ginger Mint

Life cycle: Hardy herbaceous perennial

Height: 30–45cm

Spread: Spreads by runners; best contained

Flowers: Lilac, July to September

Flavour: Warm, fruity and gently spicy, with a hint of ginger

Position: Full sun or partial shade

Soil: Moist but well-drained

Suitable for containers: Yes

Suitable for beginners: Yes

Pollinator value: High

Planting

Location: Full sun or partial shade in moist but well-drained soil.

Planting time: Spring to early autumn, avoiding frozen ground.

Containers: Use a pot at least 20–30cm across with multi-purpose compost. Repot or divide every 2–3 years to keep plants vigorous.

Care

Watering: Keep moist, especially in pots during summer. Mint does not like to dry out.

Feeding: A light liquid feed every few weeks in summer, especially for pot-grown plants.

Pruning: Pick regularly and cut back after flowering for a fresh flush of leaves. Cut down to the ground in late autumn.

Harvesting & Storage

Harvesting: Pick leaves and shoot tips from spring to autumn. The flavour is best just before flowering.

Storage: Use fresh, freeze chopped leaves in ice-cube trays, or dry in bunches somewhere warm and airy.

UK Growing Conditions

Fully hardy in the UK. Mint dies back in winter and regrows in spring. Mint spreads by underground runners, so grow it in a pot, or in a bottomless bucket sunk into the ground, to keep it contained.

Culinary Uses

Lovely in fruit salads, melon, summer drinks, iced tea and Asian-style dishes, and as a colourful garnish.

Wildlife & Garden Benefits

Mint flowers attract bees, butterflies and hoverflies, and the fragrant leaves release their scent whenever you brush past.

Plants: Plants are carefully packed and normally dispatched within 2–4 working days. Some plants may be delivered at the most appropriate time for planting or potting on.

Seeds and garden supplies: Seeds and garden supplies are normally dispatched within 2–4 working days.

Seasonal items: Bulbs, bare-root plants, trees and other seasonal products may be dispatched at the appropriate planting time to support successful establishment.